North Bay city council encouraging owners of derelict buildings to replace them

North Bay city council is trying to encourage the owners of derelict properties to tear down old buildings and replace them, bygiving owners a financial incentive in the form of a rebate.

Owners can apply for up to $50,000 in total a quarter of thatrebate goestowardthe landfill tipping fee for demolition materials. And the remaining would go toward re-development.

Councillors voted in favour of the plan this week.

Coun. Bill Vrebosch says giving more of an incentive for development is important.

"What we want here is an incentive to replace and not to create these unmaintained vacant land banks that could grow up in this thing. People just tear the things down and leave the weeds and everything else," he said.

City staff had recommended the rebate be split evenly between a tipping fee rebate and incentive for re-development, but councillors voted to amend it to encourage replacing buildings.

Coun.Scott Robertson says unsafe buildings and unkempt lots are dragging the city down.

"And we know that it causes a spiral of blight that, once you have one of thesevacant and derelict buildings in your communities, you're likely to see more them," he said.

"And so I'm really happy to see this GCIP incentive come forward. I think it's about time council took a hard line on property standards and vacant and derelict buildings."